Seymour Stein, Record Executive Who Signed Madonna, The Cure and Talking Heads, Dead at 80

Stein, the founder of Sire Records, died of cancer in Los Angeles on Sunday

Seymour Stein, the record executive who signed Madonna, The Cure and Talking Heads, has died. He was 80.

Stein died of cancer in Los Angeles on Sunday, according to a statement from his family.

His daughter Mandy told The Hollywood Reporter, "He was a doting grandfather and was incredibly proud of his grandchildren." She also confirmed he lived in L.A. with her and her children and said of his accomplishment, "I don't really feel like proud is a strong enough word. I just think to me, and obviously I'm biased, he was the ultimate music man and his taste was impeccable."

The music mogul co-founded Sire Productions — later Sire Records — in his mid-20s and he also signed the likes of the Ramones, Ice-T, the Pretenders and Depeche Mode and the Smiths.

He launched the career of then-little-known singer Madonna in the 1980s after hearing her demo tape.

"I liked Madonna's voice, I liked the feel, and I liked the name Madonna. I liked it all and played it again," he wrote in his 2018 memoir Siren Song.

Stein was actually hospitalized with a heart infection when he first heard of Madonna, but he was so keen to meet the singer, now 64, that he had her brought to his room in the hospital.

"She was all dolled up in cheap punky gear, the kind of club kid who looked absurdly out of place in a cardiac ward," he wrote in his book. "She wasn't even interested in hearing me explain how much I liked her demo. 'The thing to do now,' she said, 'is sign me to a record deal.' "

Many of the artists Stein worked with paid tribute to him on Twitter with a series of heartfelt messages. Ramones guitarist Johnny Ramone wrote alongside a photo of Stein with the band, "Seymour Stein, you will be greatly missed. You were always so gracious and supportive of the @RamonesOfficial, and to Johnny and @lindaramone. The Johnny Ramone Army sends its love to Mandy Stein and all of Seymour's family at this sad time. Legends never die. ❤️❤️❤️."

The Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr added, "RIP Seymour Stein. Legendary record man. Signed me to Sire Records in 1984 and bought me my Red 355 from 48th Street to seal the deal. Worked with The Drifters, Rolling Stones & Shangri-Las. Discovered Talking Heads, Ramones & Madonna. Well done Seymour & thank you my friend."

Stein also co-founded the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1983 and was himself inducted in 2005. "Seymour's taste in music is always a couple of years ahead of everyone else's," Talking Heads manager Gary Kurfirst told the Rock Hall amid news of his induction.

Paying tribute to him, the official Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Twitter account called him a "true tastemasker."

"In Memoriam: Entrepreneur, record executive, and co-founder of Sire Records, Seymour Stein began his career in music as a teenager, clerking at Billboard and learning the business from King Records' founder Syd Nathan, they wrote. "At Sire's helm, Stein signed such acts as the Ramones...Depeche Mode, Talking Heads, and Madonna, often predicting the next musical trend and then signing the acts that epitomized those movements. Stein received the Rock Hall's Ahmet Ertegun Award in 2005, an honor well-deserved for a true tastemaker."

Meanwhile, rapper Ice-T his fans to watch a Billboard documentary about Stein called Seymour Stein: Industry Icon "in his honor."

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As well as his daughter and grandchildren, Stein is also survived by his sister, Ann Wiederkehr, according to the family statement released by Warner Music Group Sunday.

He was married briefly to record promoter and real estate executive Linda Adler, with whom he shared daughters Mandy and Samantha Lee Jacobs, who died of brain cancer in 2013, according to ABC.

Filmmaker Mandy also said in the statement, "I grew up surrounded by music. I didn't have the most conventional upbringing, but I wouldn't change my life and my relationship with my dad for anything, and he was a loving and caring grandfather who took pleasure in every moment with his three granddaughters."

She continued, "He gave me the ultimate soundtrack, as well as his wicked sense of humor. I am beyond grateful for every minute our family spent with him, and that the music he brought to the world impacted so many people's lives in a positive way."

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